


When it Rains, It Pours

by ShadowCr0w



Category: Horizon: Zero Dawn (Video Game)
Genre: Angst, F/F, Fluff, Talanah worries about Aloy
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-12-26
Updated: 2020-12-26
Packaged: 2021-03-11 00:28:03
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,118
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28336173
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ShadowCr0w/pseuds/ShadowCr0w
Summary: Talanah Khane Padish, sunhawk of the Hunter's Lodge in Meridian, a friend to the fourteenth Sun-King Avad and one of the women who brought down Redmaw was afraid.But not of what you might think.
Relationships: Aloy/Talanah Khane Padish
Comments: 8
Kudos: 60





	When it Rains, It Pours

**Author's Note:**

  * For [rathofawesomeness](https://archiveofourown.org/users/rathofawesomeness/gifts).



> My first HZD fic! I hope you all enjoy! 😄

Talanah Khane Padish, sunhawk of the Hunter's Lodge in Meridian, a friend to the fourteenth Sun-King Avad and one of the women who brought down Redmaw was  _ afraid _ . 

Not of the storm that was currently raging outside, not even when it was one of the worst malstrom anyone's ever seen in their entire lives. Not because it threatened to destroy whatever wasn't bolted down or built into the rock surrounding them. Not because the wind made the great elevators creak and moan due to the brute force of its velocity whipping against the metal cages. 

She stood vigilant near the doors, just out of the reach of most of the water and wind as another lightning bolt streaked through the sky, quickly chased by thunder. Talanah couldn't see anything just because of how sheer the wall of rain was outside and she knew, deep in her bones, that it would take Meridian and the rest of the Sundom  _ weeks _ to recover from the carnage that ripped through their homes. Of course, as the leader of the Lodge, she'd do whatever she could to help out as needed and she'd command all available hawks and their thrushes to do the same. 

But….

Talanah was afraid for  _ her _ thrush. Aloy, despite the Nora, was out there somewhere in this frenzied rainstorm, alone and quite potentially surrounded by dangerous machines. She didn't know as much about her thrush as she'd like to, but she did know that wherever Aloy went, giant machines and dangerous adventures were there as well. It begged the question, was Aloy safe? If she wasn't, was she at least somewhere where she could be found?

"Sunhawk…" Ligan, may the Sun bless him, was trying to pull her away and further inside where she'd be safer and they'd all be holed up until this passed. 

"I'm not moving." She refused to, she couldn't even if she wanted to. If Aloy came towards the Lodge, she was going to be the first person by the redhead's side, checking her over and making sure she was okay. Talanah didn't get to see her brother and father to safety, her own Hawk ran off into battle and died without her to try and stop it so they could unseat Ahsis, she'd be damned if she lost someone else, especially Aloy who meant so much to her by now that it ached.

Talanah shook her head, her lips set in a firm grimace. "I'm waiting." She said again, dismissing Ligan back to the center of the Lodge and she took vigilance, unblinking against the wind and rain that threatened to knock her over. No matter how long it took, she'd wait for her thrush to come back even if she fell over waiting.

  
  


Aloy grimaced as she drew nearer and nearer to Daytower, the strider she was riding making a noise at her shudder as if it were concerned. Perhaps it was and it  _ did _ have a right to be due just how roughed up she was, still alive rather than dead at least but it wasn't wise to stay so dirty for much longer lest her wounds become infected. 

The guards there let her ride her mount through without much of a fuss, they were concerned about her wounds but she waved them off, staying as upright as possible so she could get back to Meridian. She couldn't trust them, she  _ didn't  _ trust most of the guards or people around her even if she knew they were mostly good guys. Aloy didn't want to show too much weakness, they could see her bleed and carry on like it was nothing. 

They wouldn't see her fall.

Making it to Meridian had been a damn miracle and then being able to limp, mostly unseen, to the Hunter's Lodge despite the heavy rainfall had been an even bigger one. She approached the doorway, seeking refuge and just before she passed out, she heard her name called by the one woman that had been on her mind, driving her to get back home no matter what. 

Talanah caught her and she blacked out.

Only to wake up, who knows how much later, with her head pillowed on a warm lap by a fire that she felt down to her chilled bones when she had thought just hours ago that not even the sun itself consuming her whole could warm her up. It was nice, a welcome change of pace even to be dryer and warmer with a soft hand carding through her slightly damp hair. 

"I was worried about you." Talanah murmurs down at her and Aloy relaxes more at the familiar timbre of her voice. It was even better than the heat of the fireplace, the warmth of her body. "I think some of the other Hawks were ready to tie me to a chair." She chuckled this time, the sound warming Aloy's ears which made her turn her face into Talanah's stomach so she could hear more of it. 

"Didn't mean to worry you so much." She grunted, really she didn't but things like this were bound to happen sooner or later. They both led dangerous lives after all. 

"Hush, you're  _ my  _ thrush and my friend even, I'm going to hate that I can't follow you where you go." That warm hand cupped under her jaw, bringing the sun-like heat closer to her face and Talanah forced Aloy to look her in the face. 

Was that the warmth of Talanah's skin or was it because Aloy suddenly blushed from the intimate stare? She really couldn't tell but she found that she kind of liked it. Feeling this type of unbalanced wasn't  _ all _ bad but it did mean she'd have to try and get her Hawk back sometime later. 

"I really… really care about you." When Talanah's voice took on a note of something akin to  _ reverence _ , instead of shying away from it like Aloy did with the Nora, she surged up and crashed her lips against Talanah's, hoping and praying to whoever was listening that she hadn't just taken a leap of faith, only to freefall with no one to catch her. 

The first thing she noticed was that by kissing Talanah, it brought her closer to that blessed warmth. The  _ second  _ thing was that Talanah had frozen before wrapping her arms around Aloy's back, dragging her in even closer to kiss her better. And when they broke apart in order to breathe, they didn't disconnect exactly, resting their foreheads against each other to soak in each other's presence. 

"I, uh, really like you too." Aloy grinned and got an eyeroll from her Sunhawk before she was shut up with another warm kiss.


End file.
